
Class 

Book 

Copyright .V*. 



copyright depostt. 



A NOBLE LIFE 




By Mary C. Haskett 



GOSPEL TRUMPET COMPANY 

Anderson, Indiana 



• H3 



Copyright 1919 

by 

Gospel Trumpet Company. 



DEC -6i9i9 

535! 






PREFACE 

The subject-matter of this little book is in- 
tended as a guide to the young through the 
adolescent period, when the centrifugal force, a 
tendency to fly off from the paths of rectitude, 
is the strongest in life. To say anything strictly 
new would be impossible. In the words of the 
poet: 

We have gathered posies from other men's flowers; 
Nothing but the thread that binds them is ours. 

It is my hope to awaken the slumbering genius 
in the youth, to stimulate and impel them to 
noble thoughts and actions, and to lead them on 
to honor, success, and happiness. 

May the blessings of the dear Lord rest on the 
boys and girls that live a good, true, pure, noble 
life. They are a blessing to any home, com- 
munity, state, or nation. The Author. 



CONTENTS 

The Influence of a Life 9 

Books 11 

Manners 13 

Kindness 15 

Cheerfulness 19 

Patience 21 

Character 23 

Pride 27 

Fretting and Grumbling 29 

Opportunity 33 

Home . 35 

Little Things Well Done 39 

In Daily Life 43 

Mother 45 

Beading 47 

Education 49 

Honesty 53 

Dress 55 

Filial Eespect 59 

Words of Help for Our Girls 61 

Young Men, Don't Drift 63 

Flirting 69 

The Choice of Friends 71 

Beauty 73 

Judging Others 75 

Music 77 

Anger 79 

Courtship 83 

A Gracious Invitation „ 87 

Life 91 



A NOBLE LIFE 

CHAPTER I 
THE INFLUENCE OF A LIFE 

"Not many lives, but only one, have we, 
One, only one; 
How sacred should that one life ever be, 
That narrow span!" 

AVE you ever thought on the influence 
of a life ? If not, try to realize the mar- 
velous power which by our lives we 
exert either for good or for evil on those around 
us. It has been said that "every word man's 
tongue hath uttered echoes in God's skies." And 
in like manner the influence of our lives reaches 
onward to eternity. Ah yes! to live for God is 
our work; and no human being can say he has 
no influence. 

"Wherever in the world I am, 

In whatsoe'er estate, 
I have a fellowship with hearts 

To keep and cultivate, 
And a work of lowly love to do 

For the Lord, on whom I wait. " 

Dear reader, this necessary element of power 
belongs to you. Your sphere may be contracted ; 

9 



in A NobU I 

m.iy be small, bul a sphere and 

influ i ly have. No man ean live 

unto himself. I t aiv not more 

■Oiely knit together than man to man. W 
get this Beeret, silent inf 

linir it by our a by our wor 

anr very thoughts. And he fa is with a 

i more than that of earth who seeks to put 
forth tha- highest power for L r ood. be his home a 
hut or a hall, a cabin or a pah: 

Here let me say. if you wish to be a blessing to 
others, ask God to Mem and direct you. Only 
feci that without him you can do nothing, and 
success will attend your efforts to do whatever 

our duty. God loves to have us tell him ev 
want and care. 

1 * Now in thy youth beseech of him 
giveth and upbraideth not. 
That his light in thy heart become not dim 

1 his love be unforgot, 
And thy God, in the darkest of days, will be 
Greenness and beauty and strength to thee. ■ ' 




Books 11 



CHAPTER II 

BOOKS 

HILDREN learn to read by being in the 
presence of books. A little library 
growing larger every year is an honor- 
able part of a young man's history. 

It is our duty to have books. A library is not 
a luxury, but one of the necessaries of life. 

The influence of books upon man is remark- 
able: you may judge a man more truly by the 
books and papers he reads than by the company 
he keeps ; for his associates are often, in a man- 
ner, imposed upon him, whereas his reading is 
a matter of choice. _ 

A good book is the most appropriate gift that 
friendship can make. It never changes ; it never 
grows unfashionable or old. It is soured by no 
neglect, is jealous of no rival; but always its 
clean, clear pages are ready to amuse, interest, 
and instruct. The voice that speaks the thought 
may change or grow still forever ; the heart that 
prompted the kindly and cheering words may 
grow cold and forgetful ; but the page that mir- 
rors them is changeless, faithful, immortal. The 
book that records the incarnation of divine love 



12 A Noble Life 

is God's best gift to man, and the books which 

are filled with kindly thought and generous sym- 
pathy arc the beat gifts of friend to Friend 

Every family OUghl to he well supplied with a 

choice selection of books for reading. "A read 
ing people will soon beeome a thinking people, 
and a thinking people must soon become a great 

people. M 

Dear reader, make up your mind to read only 
good books. Life is short and books are many. 
Instead of having your mind a garret crowded 
with rubbish, make it a parlor with rich furni- 
ture, beautifully arranged, in which you would 
not be ashamed to have the whole world enter. 

To the weak, and to the strong in their times 
of weakness, books are inspiring friends and 
teachers. Against the feebleness of individual 
efforts they proclaim the victory of faith and 
patience, and out of the uncertainty and discour- 
agement of one day's work they prophesy the 
fuller and richer life that grows strong and deep 
through conflict, sets itself more and more in 
harmony with the noblest aims, and is at last 
crowned with honor and power. 

Beware of novel-reading. 




Manners 13 



CHAPTER III 

MANNERS 

E ABE in danger these days of losing 
many of the graces that help to make 
life harmonious. The rush, the hurry, 
the feverish excitement in which many persons 
live can not be conducive to the cultivation of 
charm of manners or elevation of mind. You 
may be surprized that I mention elevation of 
mind in connection with manners, but the cul- 
tivation of good manners has more to do with 
high-mindedness and a high standard of morals 
than many of us think. Good manners con- 
stantly used uplift and refine. Bad manners 
injure and lower the character and destroy the 
perfection of life and result in making us cold 
and heartless ; while good manners help, if prac- 
tised in sincerity, to make us thoughtful, kind, 
and unselfish. They would seem to be essential 
to every well-regulated life. 

Good manners should begin at home. Manners 
are not learned so much as acquired by habit. 
They grow upon us by use. We must be courte- 
ous, agreeable, civil, mild, and gentle at home. 



14 A Nobli Lift 

and then it will become I Second nature for us 

to be so everywhere. 

The New Testament inculcatefl good manners. 
Our Savior was courteous even to hii perse- 
cutors. Look at Paul before Agrippal Bis 
speech is a model of dignified courtesy as well 

as of persuasive eloquence. A spirit of kindly 
consideration of men characterized the Twelve. 
The same mild self-sacrificing spirit that per- 
vaded the sayings and doings of the early dis- 
ciples should be exhibited by us today. 

Manners are the ornaments of actions, and 
there is a way of speaking a kind word or of 
doing a kind thing which greatly enhances its 
value. 




Kindness 15 



CHAPTER IV 

KINDNESS 

I ORE hearts pine away in secret anguish 
2fffl|| for the want of kindness from those who 
should be their comforters than for any- 
other calamity in life. 

A word of kindness is a seed which, even 
though dropped by chance, springs up a flower. 

A kind word and a pleasant tone of voice are 
gifts easy to give; be liberal with them. They 
are worth more than money. 

Kindness makes sunshine wherever it goes. 

Write your name by kindness, love, and mercy 
on the hearts of the people you come in contact 
with year by year, and you will never be for- 
gotten. There is nothing like kindness. 

It is impossible to resist continued kindness. 
In a moment of petulance or passion we may 
manifest coldness despite the exhibition of good 
will on the part of a new acquaintance; but let 
him persist, let him continue to prove himself 
really benevolent of heart, generously and kindly 
disposed, and we will find our stubborn nature 
giving way, even unconsciously to ourselves. 

If this be the result of kindness among com- 



1G A Noble Life 

parative strangers, how much more certain will 
be the delightful result at .home within the 

charmed circle of friends and relatives.' Home 
OOUrtesiee, home enjoyments, home affections, 

can not he too carefully or steadily cultivated. 

Cultivate the home virtues, the household beau- 
ties of existence. Endeavor to make the little 
cirele of domestic life a cheerful, an intelligent, 
a kindly, and a happy one. Our friends we must 
prize and appreciate while we are with them. 
It is a shame not to know how much we love our 
friends and how good they arc till they die. 

We must seize with joy all our opportunities; 
our duties we must perform with pleasure; our 
sacrifices we must make cheerfully, knowing that 
he who sacrifices most is noblest. We must for- 
give with an understanding of the glory of for- 
giveness, and use the blessings we have, realiz- 
ing how great are small blessings when properly 
accepted. 

Hard words are like hail-stones in summer, 
beating down and destroying what they would 
nourish if they were melted into drops. Kind- 
ness is stored away in the heart like rose-leaves 
in a drawer, to sweeten every object around 
them. Little drops of rain brighten the meadows, 
and little acts of kindness brighten the world. 
We can conceive of nothing more attractive than 



Kindness 17 

the heart when filled with the spirit of kindness. 
Certainly nothing so embellishes human nature 
as the practise of this virtue. A sentiment so 
excellent ought to be emblazoned upon every 
thought and act of our life. 

The principle of kindness underlies the whole 
theory of Christianity, and in no other person do 
we find it more happily exemplified than in the 
life of our Savior, who while on earth went about 
doing good. And how true it is that 

"A little word in kindness spoken, 
A motion, or a tear, 
Has often healed the heart that's broken, 
And made a friend sincere"! 



Cheerfulness 19 

CHAPTER V 
CHEERFULNESS 



OD BLESS the cheerful person, man, 
woman, or child! Would to God there 
were more cheerfulness and not so much 
gloom ! Over and above every other social trait 
stands cheerfulness. What the sun is to nature, 
what the stars are to night, what God is to the 
stricken heart that knows how to lean upon him, 
are cheerful persons in the house and by the 
wayside. Man recognizes the magic of a cheer- 
ful influence in woman more quickly and more 
willingly than the potency of dazzling genius, 
of commanding worth, or even of enslaving 
beauty. 

If we are cheerful and contented, all nature 
smiles with us, the air seems more balmy, the 
sky more clear, the ground has a brighter green, 
the trees have a richer foliage, the flowers are 
more fragrant, the birds sing more sweetly, and 
the sun, moon, and stars all appear more beau- 
tiful. 

Cheerfulness! How sweet in infancy, how 
lovely in youth, how saintly in age! There are 
some noble natures whose very presence carries 



20 .1 Nobk Life 

sunshine with them wherever they go. How such 

a face enlivens every other face it meets, and 
carries into every company vivacity and joy and 
gladness! Look a1 the bright side. 

Keep the sunshine of a living faith in the 
heart. Do not let the shadow of discouragement 
and despondency fall on your path. However 

weary you may be, the promises of God will 
never cease to shine like the stars of night to 
cheer and strengthen. A hopeful spirit will dis- 
cern the silver lining of the darkest cloud. The 
times may he hard, but it will make them no 
easier to wear a gloomy and sad countenance. 
It is the sunshine and not the cloud that makes 
the flowers. Let us try, then, to be the sunshiny 
members of the family who have the inestimable 
art of making all duty seem pleasant, all self- 
denial and exertion easy and desirable, even 
disappointment not so blank and crushing. 

Have you not known people within whose in- 
fluence you felt cheerful, amiable, and hopeful — 
equal to anything? Oh for that blessed power 
and for God's grace to exercise it rightly! I do 
not know a more enviable gift than the power 
to diffuse around us an atmosphere of cheerful- 
ness, piety, truthfulness, generosity, magnanim- 
ity. Reader, covet this grace. 



Patience 21 

CHAPTER VI 

PATIENCE 

ATIENCE is the guardian of faith, the 
preserver of peace, the eherisher of love, 
the teacher of humility. Patience gov- 
erns the flesh, strengthens the spirit, sweetens 
the temper, stifles anger, extinguishes envy, sub- 
dues pride. She bridles the tongue, restrains the 
hand, tramples upon temptations, endures per- 
secutions, consummates martyrdom. 

Always have a good stock of patience laid by 
and be sure you put it where you can easily find 
it. Cherish patience ; always keep it about you. 
You will find use for it of tener than for all other 
virtues. Patience is not easily provoked. Be 
patient with the little child. Be patient with 
the aged. Be patient in suffering. 

"But let patience have her perfect work, that 
ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing" 
(Jas. 1:3, 4). "In your patience possess ye 
your souls' ' (Luke 21: 19). "For ye have need 
of patience, that, after ye have done the will of 
God, ye might receive the promise " (Heb. 10: 
26). "But that on the good ground are they 



22 A Noble Life 

which in an honest and good heart, having heard 
the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with 
patience" (Luke 8:15). 



mo 1 



Character 23 

CHAPTER VII 

CHARACTEE 

| HERE is a structure which everybody 
is building, each for himself. It is called 
character. Reputation is what people 
say about us, but character is what we are as 
God sees us. If day by day we be careful to 
build our lives with pure, noble, upright deeds, 
at the end will stand a fair temple, honored by 
man and God. But as one leak will sink a ship 
and one flaw break a strong chain, so one mean, 
dishonest, untruthful act or word will forever 
leave its impress and work its influence on our 
character. Then, let the several deeds unite to 
form a day and one by one the days grow into 
noble years, and the years as they slowly pass 
will rise at last a beautiful edifice enduring for- 
ever to our praise. 

Here is a great structure going up, piece by 
piece, story by story, although you are not con- 
scious of it. It is a building of character, and 
the word of inspiration warns you to take heed 
in building it to see that you have a foundation 
that shall endure ; to make sure that you are 
building on it, not for the hour in which you live, 



24 A Noble Lifi 

but for that hour o!' revelation when you shall 
he seen just as you are. 
Our minds are given us, hut our characters 

we make. Our mental powers must he culti- 
vated. (Jod givefl the mind, hut by words, acts, 
thoughts, and deeds we make our character. The 
mind is the garden; character is the fruit. The 

mind is a white page; character is the writing we 

put on it. The mind is the metallic plate; char- 
acter is our engraving. 

A good character is a precious thing, above 
rubies, gold, crowns, or kingdoms, and the work 
of making it is the noblest labor on earth. If 
aught on earth is despicable, it is those porous 
masses of conglomerated filth and scum that 
float on the surface of society, driven or attracted 
by every speck of circumstances about them. 
They are purposeless, powerless, enervated auto- 
matons playing second fiddle to second chance. 
One brave will to resist evil and hold fast to 
good is worth a million of them. One stout soul 
with a resolute determination to make its own 
character after the pattern of its own high- 
wrought ideal is of more real significance than 
an army of them. 

Character is like stock in trade. The more of 
it a man possesses, the greater his facilities for 
adding to it. Character is power, is influence. 



Character 25 

It makes friends, creates funds, draws patron- 
age and support, and opens a sure and easy way 
to honor and happiness. 

Truthfulness is a corner-stone in character, 
and if it is not firmly laid in youth, there will 
be ever after a weak spot in the foundation. 
Under no circumstances should we tell a lie. 

The value of character is the standard of hu- 
man progress. The individuals, communities, 
nations tell their standing, their advancement, 
their worth, their true wealth and glory in the 
eye of God by their estimation of character. 

As I have already said, our character is 
formed by words, thoughts, deeds, and actions. 
Let us all be careful what we say, how we act, 
and what we think. Remember, our character is 
what God sees of us. 




Pride 27 

CHAPTER Vin 

PEIDE 

RIDE is like an empty bag. Who can 
stand such a thing upright? It is hol- 
low and heartless. 

Pride is often the effect of ignorance, for pride 
and folly attend each other. Ignorance and pride 
keep constant company. 

Pride, joined with many virtues, chokes them 
all. Pride is the bane of happiness. 

Pride must have a fall. Solomon said, ' ' Pride 
goeth before destruction." 

Pride and ill-nature will be hated in spite of 
all the wealth and greatness in the world. 

There is an honest pride, such as makes one 
ashamed to do an evil act, a degree of self-esteem 
that makes one above doing an injury to any 
one; but it is the pride which sets one above his 
fellows that we depreciate, that spirit which 
would demand homage to itself as better and 
greater than others. 

Oh the pangs of pride ! What misery is here 
covered up ! Smiles abroad, tears at home. 

Pride is the ape of Charity. In seeking the 
one, take heed thou light not upon the other. 



28 A NobU Life 

charity Feeds the poor, bo does Pride; Charity 

builds a hospital, so dots Pride. In this they 

differ: Charity gives her glory to Cod; Pride 

takes her dory from man. 



Fretting and Grumbling 29 

CHAPTER IX 

FRETTING AND GRUMBLING 

■HBANY very excellent persons whose lives 
f^H are honorable and whose characters are 
IS^H noble pass numberless hours of sadness 
and weariness of heart. The fault is not with 
their circumstances, as they suppose, nor yet with 
their general character. Their misery is due to 
their failure to adopt the true philosophy of 
life. They wait for happiness to come instead 
of going to work and making it ; and while they 
wait, they torment themselves with borrowed 
troubles, with fears, forebodings, morbid fancies, 
and moody spirits, until they are all unfitted for 
happiness under any circumstances. 

Sometimes they cherish improper ambition, 
covet some fancied or real good they do not de- 
serve and could not enjoy if it were theirs, 
wealth they have not earned, honors they have 
not won, attentions they have not merited. Some- 
times they shade the present with every cload 
of the past, and although surrounded by a thou- 
sand inviting duties and pleasures, revel in sad 
memories with a kind of morbid relish for the 
stimulus of their miseries. Sometimes forget- 



30 A NobU Life 

ting the past and the present . they live in the 
future, not in its probable realities but in its 

most, improbable visions and unreal creations, 

now of good and then of evil, wholly unfitting 
their minds for real life and enjoyments. 

These morbid and improper states of mind are 
too prevalent among some persons. They exeite 
that nervous irritability that is so productive of 
pining regrets and fretful complaints. They 
make that large class of fretters who enjoy no 
peace themselves nor permit others to enjoy it. 
In the domestic circle they fret their life away. 
Everything goes wrong with them because they 
make it so. The smallest annoyance chafes them 
as though it were an unbearable vexation. Their 
business and duties trouble them as though such 
things were not good. Pleasure they never seem 
to know r , because they never get ready to enjoy 
it. Their home is the worst of all homes. Their 
streets and their neighborhood are the most un- 
pleasant to be found. Nobody else has so many 
annoyances as they. Their lot is harder than 
falls to common mortals; they have to work hard- 
er and always have had to; they have less and al- 
ways expect to. They have seen more trouble 
than other folks know anything about. They are 
never so well as their neighbors. And they al- 
ways charge all their unhappiness upon those 



Fretting and Grumbling 31 

nearest connected with them, never dreaming 
that they are themselves the authors of it all. 
Such people are to be pitied. 

This defect in character is more generally the 
result of the indulgence of gloomy thoughts, 
morbid fancies, inordinate ambition, a complain- 
ing, fault-finding disposition. He who frets is 
never the one who mends, heals, or repairs evils ; 
more, he discourages, enfeebles, and too often 
disables those around him who, but for the 
gloom and depression of his company, would do 
good work and keep up brave cheer. There is 
no vice except drunkenness that can so utterly 
destroy the peace and happiness of a home. 

Why do people scold? Because they can not 
govern themselves. How can they hope to gov- 
ern others? Those who govern well are gener- 
ally calm. They are prompt and resolute, but 
steady. 

It is not work that kills a man; it is worry. 
Work is healthy. 

How unpleasant to be in company with one 
who frets, scolds, and grumbles, always seeing 
the faults of others but never his own ! Wouldn 't 
it be much pleasanter to have a sunny disposi- 
tion, overlooking the faults of those around us? 
Reader, if you are guilty of these ugly habits, 
begin at once to cultivate good habits, good 



32 A NobU Lifi 

thoughts about others. Be pleasant, kind, lov- 
ing, gentle, and humble, and you will be happy 
and make others happy. Try it. 




Opportunity 33 

CHAPTER X 

OPPORTUNITY 

| VERY life affords opportunities for 
building up noble character. We are 
sent into this world to build up char- 
acter that will be blessed and useful in that 
great future for which we are being trained. 
There is a niche which only we can fill, a crown 
which only we can wear, music which only we 
can waken, service which only we can render. 
God knows what these are, and is giving us op- 
portunities to prepare for them. 

Four things come not back — the spoken word, 
the sped arrow, the past life, and the neglected 
opportunity. 

Heaven gives us enough when it gives us op- 
portunity. Remember you are responsible for 
opportunities as well as for talents and for time. 
Improve them as one that must give an account. 
If you think your opportunities are not good 
enough, you had better improve them. Make 
hay while the sun shines. As a general rule, 
those who have no opportunities despise small 
ones; and those who despise small opportunities 
never get large ones. 



34 A NobU Lifi 

Accident docs very Little toward the produc- 
tion of any greal results in life, though some 

times what is called a "happy hit " may be made 

by a bold venture. The old and common high- 
way of steady industry and application is the 
only sale road to travel. It is not usually ac- 
cident that helps a man in the world, hut pur- 
pose and persistent industry. These make a 
man sharp to discern opportunities and turn 
them to account. To the feeble, the sluggish, 
and the purposeless, the happiest opportunities 
avail nothing. They pass them by seeing no 
meaning in them. If great opportunities were 
to come to most of us, we could make nothing of 
them. They would pass by us unnoticed or un- 
improved. They would go from us to those who 
had more nerve, or grit, or spiritual power than 
we. 

You can not just because you will, speak a 
foreign language, dash off a brilliant air upon 
the piano, or talk easily on the motive of one of 
Browning's poems. All these demand long and 
arduous study. 

"As we have therefore opportunity, let us do 

od onto all men" (Gal. 6:10). 




Home 35 

CHAPTER XI 

HOME 

HAT a hallowed name! How full of 
enchantment and how dear to the heart ! 
Home is the magic circle within which 
the weary spirit finds refuge. Home! That 
name touches every fiber of the soul and strikes 
every cord of the human heart with its angelic 
fingers. Nothing but death can break its spell. 
What tender associations are linked with 
home ! What pleasing images and deep emotions 
it awakens ! It calls up the fondest memories of 
life and opens in our nature the purest, deepest, 
richest gush of consecrated thought and feeling. 
Home of my childhood! What words fall upon 
the ear with so much of music in their cadence as 
those which recall the scenes of innocent and 
happy childhood now numbered with the mem- 
ories of the past? How fond recollection de- 
lights to dwell upon the events which marked 
our early pathway when the unbroken home cir- 
cle presented a scene of loveliness vainly sought 
but in the bosom of a happy family ! Interven- 
ing years have not dimmed the vivid coloring 
with which memory has adorned those joyous 



36 '1 Nobli Life 

hours of youthful innocence. We are again borne 
on the wings of immagination to the place made 
sacred by the remembrance of a father's care. 

a mother's love, and the cherished associations 

of brother and sister. 

Home! How often we hear persons speak of 
the home of their childhood. Their minds seem 
to delight in dwelling upon the recollection of 

joyous days spent beneath the parental roof, 
when their young and happy hearts were as lighl 

and free as the birds who made the woods re- 
sound witli the melody of their cheerful voices. 

What a blessing it is, when weary with care and 
burdened with sorrow, to have a home to which 
we can go and there, in the midst of friends we 
love, forget our troubles and dwell in peace and 
quietness ! 

There is music in the word ''home." Among 
the many songs we are wont to listen to, there 
is not one more cherished than the touching 
melody of "Home, Sweet Home/ 1 None can 
tell how often the commission of crime is pre- 
vented by the memories of home and loved ones. 
If, then, the spell of home is so powerful, how 
important it is to make it pleasant and lovable! 
Many a time a cheerful home and smiling face 
do more to make good men and women than all 
the learning and eloquence that can be used. 



Home 37 

How sweet the words "Mother, Home, and 
Heaven' M And one might almost say that the 
word "home" includes them all; for who can 
think of home without remembering the gentle 
mother who sanctified it by her presence? and 
is not home the dearest name for heaven? We 
think of that better land as a home where bright- 
ness will never end in night. Oh, then, may our 
homes on earth be the centers of all our joys; 
may they be as green spots in the desert, to which 
we can retire when weary of the cares and per- 
plexities of life, and drink the clear water of a 
love which we know to be sincere and always 
unfailing. 

Heaven is to be our eternal home. Through 
the rich grace of Christ Jesus may we all reach 
it. 




Little Tilings Well Done 39 

CHAPTER XII 

LITTLE THINGS WELL DONE 

JET IT be granted that you are a person 
of ordinary ability. Perhaps you will 
never be removed into a wider sphere 
tiian tne one in which you have been pining like 
a wood-bird in its cage. Give up your useless 
regret, your querulous complaint, and begin to 
meet the call of trivial commonplace, with ten- 
derness to each person you encounter, with faith 
in God as doing his best for you, with heroic 
courage and unswerving fidelity, with patience, 
thoroughness, submission. Go on acting thus 
week in and week out, year by year, with no 
thought of human notice, determined always to 
be at your best, eager only to pay out without 
stint the gold of a noble, unselfish heart. At the 
end of life, though you may know not that your 
face glistens, others will see you shining like 
the sun in your heavenly Father's kingdom. It 
will be discovered that you have a great and 
noble life, and you will be greeted on the thresh- 
old of heaven with the "well done" of your 
Lord. 

Some who are sighing for a great life are un- 



40 -l NobU Lifi 

consciously living it in the eye of Qod's angels. 
Those who meet the incessant demand of monot- 
onous! tasks with gentleness, unselfishness, and 

the wealth of a stron-, true heart — these, though 

they know it not, arc graduating for the front 

ranks of heaven's nobility. It is a greater thing 

to do little things well than those which seem 
more important. They who daily handle mat- 
ters that bulk largely before the eyes of their 
fellows are expected to act from great motives 
and to behave worthily in their great and im- 
portant positions. The statesman is expected to 
be highminded, the Christian lady to be virtuous, 
the minister to be earnest. There is no special 
credit to any of these for being what they pro- 
fess and are expected to be. The current is with 
them. Their difficulty would be to face it. Sure- 
ly in God's Bight it is a much greater when the 
soul conquers adverse circumstances and rises 
superior to the drift of associations. To be high- 
minded when your companions are mean and 
degraded ; to be chaste when ease and wealth 
beckon you to enter the gate of vice; to be de- 
vout or zealous when no one expects it: to do 
small things from great motives — this is the 
loftiest attainment of the soul. It is a greater 
thing to do an unimportant thing from a great 
motive for God, for truth, for others, than to do 



Little Tilings Well Done 41 

an important one; greater to suffer patiently 
each day a thousand stings than die once as a 
martyr at the stake. 

Therefore an obscure life really offers more 
opportunities for nurture of the loftiest type of 
character, just because it is less liable to be 
visited by those meaner considerations of noto- 
riety or applause or money which intrude them- 
selves into more prominent positions and scatter 
their deadly taint. 

You can not be brave in a crisis if you are 
habitually a coward. You can not be generous 
with a fortune if you are a miser with a limited 
income. You can not be unselfish in some acci- 
dent that imperils life if you are always pressing 
for the one vacant seat on a train or a street-car, 
and elbowing your way to the front on every 
possible occasion. David must practise with 
sling and stone through long hours in the wil- 
derness, or he will never bring down Goliath. 
Joseph must be pure in thought and strong in 
private self-discipline, or he will never resist the 
solicitation of the temptress. The Sunday-school 
teacher must be regular, painstaking, faithful 
in conducting his class of girls and boys, or 
he will never be promoted to serve his Master as 
a minister at home or as a missionary abroad. 

Of course, we can not be saved by works only. 



4l> A Noble Life 

There is DO savin- merit in what we do. Sal 
vation is only by simple trust in our Savior, 
Jesus. Hut when we are saved, it gives new zest 

to life to do all for him as Lord and Master, and 

to know that he is well pleased in the righl 
doing of the most trivial duties of the home or 
daily business. 

May each reader Learn this happy art, and go 
through life offering all to God as the white- 
robed priests in the temple of old. Indeed, all 
believers, those who have been born again, have 
been made priests unto God; every sphere may 
be a holy temple; and every act done in the 
name of Jesus may be a spiritual sacrifice, ae- 
eeptable to (iod through Jesus Christ our Lord. 



In Daily Life 43 

CHAPTER XIII 
IN DAILY LIFE 



T IS the correct thing to live a straight- 
forward and upright life, to be orderly 
and decent in everything. This can 
be done only by the formation of proper habits. 
Remember that a habit is as easily cultivated as 
a plant. Daily attention is absolutely essential 
to success ; and if it is given, then success is cer- 
tain. Without it, of course, nothing can be done. 
Any taste or inclination can be overcome by re- 
sistance persevered in without wavering. 

Eemember that habits of industry are quite 
easily acquired by resolution, and that there 
is no excuse for the man who does not form them. 
To rich or poor they are essential if anything is 
to be accomplished during life. A rich man 
without these habits sinks into obscurity. 

Early rising is valuable, not merely because it 
counteracts the tendency to sloth and enables 
you to use the best hours of the day for work and 
study, but also because it prevents that midnight 
dissipation which is fatal when it becomes 
habitual. 

You should accustom yourself to fulfil your 



44 .1 Noble TAfi 

intentions ami resolves, [f you have determined 

to rise early, do not le1 idleness break your de- 

tennination when the time conies. I i' you have 
made certain plans for the (lay, resolutely carry 
them out. 

A man who has no profession and no occupa- 
tion should he as exact and punctual in business 
matters as those whose lives are devoted to husi- 
ness. Never neglect the business matters in con- 
nection with your affairs. To do so means too 
probably ruin at some future day and certainly 
embarrassment. A rich man should understand 
the value of money just as well as a poor one. 
Recollect that there is nothing grand in being 
cheated or in throwing money away by unbusi- 
nesslike proceedings. Those who benefit by it 
only ridicule you. If you have more money than 
you need, there are always persons at hand who 
are in real need and can be benefited by it. You 
should observe the habits of successful men and 
endeavor to acquire them. You will find they 
are careful, watchful, prompt, and exact. In 
business you can not act in a hurry. You can- 
not pass over trifles as if of no importance. You 
can not afford to be dilatory or careless. Be 
courteous, thoughtful, and pleasant in all your 
dealings, and last, but not least, be honest. 




Mother 45 

CHAPTER XIV 

MOTHER 

HAT a power in the very word Mother ! 
No power can break the spell which a 
good mother throws around her child. 
! le may wander away from home and for a 
while may even seem to have forgotten a moth- 
er 's prayer and a mother 's kisses, but somewhere 
and somehow that lovely face and fond caress 
will flash upon the mind. It is true to nature, 
although it be expressed in a figurative form, 
that a mother is both the morning and the eve- 
ning star of life. Heaven has imprinted in the 
mother 's face something beyond this world, some- 
thing which claims kindred with the skies — the 
angelic smile, the tender look, the waking, watch- 
ful eye which keeps its fond vigil over her slum- 
bering babe. 

Can a mother's love be supplanted? No! A 
thousand times no! There is an enduring ten- 
derness in the love of a mother for her child 
that transcends all other affections of the heart. 
It is neither to be chilled by selfishness, daunted 
by danger, weakened by worthlessness, nor stifled 
by ingratitude. She will sacrifice every comfort 



16 .1 Nobli TAfi 

to his convenience; Bhc will surrender every 

pleasure to his enjoyment ; she will glory in his 
fame and exult in his prosperity; if misfortune 
overtake him, he will he the dearer to her he- 
cause of his misfortune; if disgrace settle upon 

his name, she will still love and cherish him in 

spite of his disgrace; and if all the world beside 

cast him off, she will be all the world to him. 

The mother can take man's whole nature 
under her control. She becomes what she has 

been called — "The Divinity of Infancy." Her 
smile is its sunshine, her word its mildest law. 
until sin and the world have steeled the heart. 
She can shed around her the most genial of all 
influences, and from the time when she first laps 
her little one in Elysium by clasping him to her 
bosom, "its first paradise," to the moment when 
that child is independent of her aid, or perhaps 
like Washington, directs the destiny of millions, 
her smile, her word, her wish is an inspiring 
force. 

Dear reader, I hope you will always love, re- 
spect, and obey your mother. 



Beadmg 47 

CHAPTER XV 

READING 



NE'S reading is usually a fair index of 
one's character. Abstain from those 
books which, while they have some good 
things about them, have also an admixture of 
evil. You can not afford to read a bad book how- 
ever good you are. "The influence is insignifi- 
cant, " do you say? I reply that the scratch 
of a pin has sometimes produced lockjaw. 

Inferior books are to be rejected in an age 
when we are courted by whole libraries and when 
no man's life is long enough to compass even 
those which are good and great and famous. 
Why should we bow down at puddles, when we 
can approach freely to the crystal spring-head? 
To read with profit, the book must be of a kind 
calculated to inform the mind, correct the head, 
and better the heart. These books should be 
read with attention, understood, remembered, 
and their precepts put in practise. 

To those who plead the want of time to read, 
we would say, Be as frugal of your hours as you 
are of your dollars, and you can create time in 
the busiest day. The time you devote to reading 



18 A Nobli TAfi 

good books is time well spent. We can not afford 
to neglecl reading good books. 

Beware of novel-reading. Many a noble tree 

has been eaten through by minute insects, and 
many a promising character has been injured by 
novels and novelettes. We can not be too care 
ful in selecting the books we read or influence 
others to read. 

Of all the books ever written, not one con- 
tains such instructive and such sublime reading 
and so meat a variety of it as the Bible. Resolve 
to read it. You will find realities there more 
wonderful than any picture of fiction drawn by 
the finest penciling of the master-hand of the 
most practised novelist that has shone in the daz- 
zling galaxy of ancient or modern writers. 

We should read slowly and try to remember 
what we read. Reading is good pastime for 
young and old. We should not neglect so im- 
portant a duty as reading. It is a duty we owe 
to ourselves and our families. 



Education 49 

CHAPTER XVI 

EDUCATION 



TRUE education must be physical, 
mental, moral, and spiritual. True 
education is the training and develop- 
ing of all one's powers. One's education should 
make him a good citizen and a good member of 
his family. Education does not mean merely 
the filling of the mind with information, or a col- 
lection of facts, however well-ordered these may 
be. A child should learn to think and act for 
himself by degrees, else he will have no indepen- 
dence of action when he becomes a man. The 
development of the reasoning faculty is one of 
the most important results of a right education, 
and the power of independent decision must be 
developed with it. The information of the judg- 
ment is a vital part of education. To enter upon 
life full of accomplishments and with a highly 
cultivated mind, but without the judgment 
formed, is like entering an arena unarmed, with- 
out any weapon of defense. 

The habit of weighing and balancing opinions 
and theories, a habit that can be acquired during 
education, prepares the mind to consider courses 



50 1 Nobli Lifi 

of action in the same manner, and also to judge 
of others by their conduct and circumstances. 
When the judgment is untrained, the last book 

read is the most wonderful, the newest theory 

the truest, the latest acquaintance the most valu- 
able 

The mere task-work of education has a great 
result than the acquirement of a particular form 
of detail knowledge — it induces the virtue of 
patience. 

The memory, which is continually in use dur- 
ing education, is one of your most important 
faculties. Train it steadily as you would a 
restive horse, and you will have a servant whose 
value can not be overrated. 

Do not acquire any knowledge whatever of a 
subject or a Language partially or imperfectly. 
Whatever you learn, learn thoroughly, and then 
you will always be able to hold your own among 
others. 

You should use every opportunity of such 
mental education as the study of arts, music, or 
anything else that is elevating and uplifting. By 
gaining a srood education you will have your re- 
ward in the rich stores of knowledge you have 
thus collected, and which will ever be at your 
command. More valuable than earthly treasure. 
Fleets may sink and storehouses burn, banks 



Education 51 

may fail and riches flee, but the intellectual in- 
vestments you have thus made will be permanent 
and enduring, unfailing as the constant flow of 
Niagara or Amazon. Nor will you be able to 
fill these storehouses to their full. Pour into a 
glass a stream of water, and at last it fills to the 
brim and will not hold another drop. But you 
may pour into your mind through a whole life- 
time streams of knowledge from every conceiv- 
able quarter, and not only will it never be full, 
but it will constantly thirst for more and wel- 
come each fresh supply with a greater joy. 

The beginning of wisdom is to fear God, but 
the end of it is to love him. The highest learn- 
ing is to be wise, and the greatest wisdom is to 
be good. Use your education to the glory of God. 




Honesty 53 

CHAPTER XVII 

HONESTY 

F YOU wish to be great, be honest. The 
first step toward greatness is to be hon- 
est, for without honesty you can never 
hope to be great. No man has ever been too 
honest. "He that walketh uprightly, walketh 
surely ; but he that perverteth his ways shall be 
known " (Pro v. 10:9). Honesty is the best 
policy. But no man can be upright amid the 
various temptations of life unless he is honest for 
the right's sake. You should not be honest from 
the low motive of policy, but because you feel the 
better for being honest. Then lay the founda- 
tions of a character broad and deep. Build them 
on a rock and not on sand. The rains may then 
descend, the floods rise, and the wind blow, but 
your house will stand. But establish a character 
on loose dealings, and lo! some great tempest 
will sweep it away. 

Some, in their greed to accumulate, practise 
secret frauds and imagine there is no harm in 
it so they be not detected. But in vain will they 
cover up their transgressions. For God, who 
knows the secret thoughts of the heart, sees it 



54 A Noble TAfi 

to the bottom, "Be sure your sin will find you 
out" (Num. 32:23). It pays to be honest 
God grant thai each reader of this little book 

will be Strictly honest with all men and hon- 
est before God. It is my earnest desire to eradi- 
cate the impression so fatal to many a young 
man, that one can not live by being perfectly 

honest. This is a sad mistake. Every one, rich 

or poor, gTeat or small, young or old, should be 
strictly honest, truthful, and uprighl in his deal- 
ings. Provide things honest in the sight of all 
men. 

There are men who choose honesty as a soul 
companion. They live in it and with it and by 
it. They embody it in their actions and lives. 
Their words speak it; their faces beam it: their 
actions proclaim it ; their hands are true to it ; 
their feet tread its path ; they are full of it ; they 
love it, as God loves it; they believe it is of God. 
It makes them beautiful men ; yea, more noble 
men, great, brave, righteous men. Honesty, peer- 
less queen of principles! how her smile enhalos 
the men who love her! How ready they are to 
suffer for her, to die for her! They are martyrs. 
See them — what a multitude! — some at the stake, 
some in stocks, some in prison, and some on the 
cross. But they are all sustained. They smile 
on their foes. They have peace within. 



Dress 55 

CHAPTER XVIII 
DRESS 



RESS perplexes some and takes up much 
of their time and thought. They love 
dress too much who give it their first 
thought, their best time, or all their money ; who 
for it neglect the culture of mind or heart or the 
claims of others on their service ; who care more 
for their dress than their disposition; who are 
troubled more by an unfashionable bonnet than 
by a neglected duty. 

Female loveliness never appears to so good 
advantage as when set off by simplicity of dress. 
No artist ever decks his angels with towering 
feathers and gaudy jewelry; and our dear 
human angels, if they would make good their 
title to that name, should carefully avoid orna- 
ments, which properly belong to Indian squaws 
and African princesses. Tinselry may serve to 
give effect on the stage or upon the ballroom 
floor, but in daily life there is no substitute for 
the charm of simplicity. 

Through dress the mind may be read as 
through delicate tissue the lettered page. A 
modest woman will dress modesty ; a really re- 



.1 Nobh 1. 
fined and intelligent woman will hear the marks 

of careful selection ami faultless taste. Often 

tin- befi COatfl on OUT Streets arc worn on the 

backs of penniless f<>ps. broken-down merchants, 

clerks with pitiful salaries, and men that do not 
pay up. Tim heaviest gold chains dangle from 

the fobs of gamblers and gentlemen of very lim- 
ited means; costly ornaments on ladies often in- 
dicate to the eyes that are well opened the fact 
of a silly lover or a husband cramped tor funds; 
and when a pretty woman goes by in plain and 
neat apparel, it is the presumption that she has 
fair expectations and a husband that can show 
a balance in his favor. 

What multitudes of young women waste all 
that is precious in life on the fooleries of the 
toilet ! How the soul of womanhood is dwarfed 
and shriveled by such trifles and kept away from 
the greatest fields of activities, thought and love 
by the gew-gaws she hangs on her bonnet! How 
light must be that thing which will float on the 
of fashion — a bubble, a feather, a puff-ball! 
and yet multitudes of women float there, live 
there, and call it life. Poor things! Woman was 
made for a higher purpose, a nobler use, a 
grander destiny. Her powers are rich and strong, 
her genius bold and daring. She may walk the 
fields of thought, achieve the victories of mind. 



Dress 57 

spread around her the testimonials of her worth, 
and make herself known and felt as man's co- 
worker and equal in whatever exalts mind, em- 
bellishes life, or sanctifies humanity. 

No person can attend the services of the fash- 
ionable churches in towns and cities, and wor- 
ship God without distraction. One needs con- 
tinually to offer the prayer, "Turn away mine 
eyes from beholding vanity. ' ' There is the rustle 
of rich silks, the flutter of gay fans, the nodding 
of plumes and flowers ; the tilting of lace, of rib- 
bons, of curls ; here is a head frizzled till it looks 
more like a picture of the Furies than a miss of 
"sweet sixteen." There are bracelets and ear- 
rings and fantasies of every sort and every hue — 
everything that is absurd and foolish in fashion 
and everything that is grotesque and ridiculous 
in trying to ape fashion. All these are before 
you, between you and the speaker. How can 
you worship God? 

My dear sister, do not dress showily or ex- 
travagantly or beyond your means. Do not dress 
in such a way as to call attention to any part of 
your figure or to distort or alter it. Do not dress 
so that people will notice your dress more than 
you. I think there is no higher art for a girl 
than to dress simply, quietly, and tastefully, as 
one who is careful of the body that God has 



.1 NobU Lift 
given, but who is mindful also of the apart 

words: Lei "women adorn t hciiiscl \ cs in modest 

apparel, with shamefacedness and Bobriety; not 
with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly 
array" 1 Tim. 2s 9 . "Whose adorning Lei it 
not be that outward adorning of plaiting the 

hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on oi* 

apparel; but let it be the hidden man of the 
heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the 

ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is ii: 

the sight of God of great price" 1 Peter3:3,4 . 



Filial Respect 59 

CHAPTER XIX 
FILIAL RESPECT 



T IS a good thing for parents and chil- 
dren to be good friends. It is the cor- 
rect thing for a young man to show re- 
spect to his father. Not to do so does not lessen 
the father's dignity, but shows that the son does 
not know what is good form. A young girl 
should give her mother the deference due her. 
It is undeniable that the young sometimes pos- 
sess qualities their elders have not, talents being 
inborn. A girl may be a better housekeeper than 
her mother, a better accountant, or be more ac- 
complished; but if she exhibits her talents in 
such a way as to imply a contempt for her moth- 
er, it will only make onlookers dislike her in 
spite of her ability. 

Remember that to be a good son or a good 
daughter is a lovable trait, and inclines others 
to like you. The old adage that "a good son 
makes a good husband" is so true that no one 
can afford to forget it. It is good for children 
to speak even more lovingly and respectfully of 
their parents in their absence than in their pres- 



60 -l NobU I 

ence. This will endear you to Others, for it 
shows a true heart. 

It is the correct thing for children to accept 
their parents' judgment as worthy of respect, 
if only because they have traveled so much 

farther on in life and necessarily know more of 

its pitfalls and snares. Jt is good when IB so- 
ciety for a young man to give his mother as much 
attention and show her as niueh courtesy as if 
she were his sweetheart. Among highly bred 
persons you will always find this the custom. At 
your father's dinner-table, to let him speak and 
tell his own tales without your interruption 
shows good manners. If your generation is much 
more enlightened than his, it will not justify you 
in showing him any disrespect; and perhaps, 
for all you know, the guests may really prefer 
his conversation. 

Be frank, honest, and truthful with your par- 
ents. Always be a kind, obedient, loving, duti- 
ful child, and you will never regret it, "Honor 
thy father and mother, which is the first com- 
mandment with promise'' (Eph. 6:2). 



Words of Help for Our Girls 61 

CHAPTER XX 

WORDS OF HELP FOR OUR GIRLS 



NOT dress showily, beyond your means, 
in such a way as to attract attention, or 
so that people will notice your dress 
more than you. Dress for health and comfort. 

Do not flirt. Flirting is a horrid outrage upon 
the most holy and exalted feelings of the human 
soul and the most sacred and important relations 
of life. 

Do not dance. I have often wondered how 
girls who have any self-respect can yield them- 
selves, especially when attired in the flimsy cos- 
tume of a ballroom, to the embrace of strange 
men whose morals may be worse than doubtful. 
It does not seem fit that the body of a young 
lady, meant to be the temple of the Holy Ghost, 
should be whirled through the maze of a waltz by 
one whose linen may be spotless but whose soul 
is dark with the ruin of some of your sisters — 
sisters who, though fallen now, were once "white 
as the beautiful snow. ' ' You should have nothing 
to do with intemperate and dissolute young men. 

Music is elevating, and the ability to produce 



62 .1 NobU Lifi 

it is a delightful accomplishment. Do not neg« 

led music. 

Take advantage of every opportunity for read- 
ing, selecting such hooks as will give you suitable 
training and practical information Tor a good, 

useful, and QOble life. Do QOl road novels, when 

there are so many good books you can read. 

Miss h. Eagerty once wrote: "The sweetesl 
girl I ever know was gentle, cheerful, bright, and 
true." Any girl possessing these qualities is 

sure to be considered "a sweet and charming 
girl." If she is gentle in her manner and her 
dress, gentle toward the siek and the aged; not a 
giggling, boisterous, foolisli girl, but a gentle, 
reserved, and refined maiden: cheerful at all 
times and under all circumstances, always hope- 
Eul and striving to make others happy; witty, 
but never sarcastic, and true — true to herself, 
true to her parents, true to her friends, and true 
to her God — who could help calling such a 
maiden "the sweetest girl"! 

Reader, do you possess these qualities 1 [f not, 
begin at once to attain them. It is possible. 



j&ft 



Young Men, Don't Drift 63 

CHAPTER XXI 

YOUNG MEN, DON'T DRIFT 

|ES, IT is the drifting that is most to be 
feared. Men don't become atheists and 
swindlers at a leap. For every one who 
resolutely sets his face against God, there are 
hundreds who drift from him. Young men come 
to our great centers of population from holy and 
blessed homes where they have been born and 
bred. They are nice, amiable, well-meaning fel- 
lows with no intention of going wrong, though 
perhaps with no very strong resolution to go 
right. The last words of advice from father or 
mother ring in their ears, urging them to keep 
up good habits, in which they have been trained 
since childhood, and they intend to conform to 
these. If such a young man falls in company 
with those who have good influence, it is very 
likely that he will turn out well; but if he 
goes into an establishment or a house where there 
is a fast, gay set, where the Lord's day is unkept, 
where filthy allusions pollute the talk and gam- 
bling fills the leisure hours, after the first mo- 
mentary shock is over, he is apt to give himself 
up to the strong prevailing current and begin in- 



64 -1 NobU Life 

sensibly hut swiftly to drift. It is not necessary 

at first that he should commit some flagrant 

sins. It is enough that, he ceases to resist the 
insidious influence around. 

Young man, is this a true picture of your con- 
dition? If so, heed the advice of one who is 
older, one who is interested in your welfare. 
Don't drift into loose companionship. A man is 
made or marred by his friends. Beware of the 
man who talks slightingly of his mother, father, 
home, or of women generally. Many men ridi- 
cule any allusion to the purity and tenderness 
of the home circle, and apparently have no be- 
lief that woman can be other than the toy or 
victim of man — never his equal and confidant 
and friend. Beware of such men. 

Beware of the man who professes himself too 
deeply versed in science of the day to believe in 
the Bible and who ridicules those who do. A 
man has no more right to steal away or spoil 
your faith than he has to deprive you of your 
eyesight or rob you of your purse. And if he 
attempt it, he betrays a dangerous character of 
which you will do well to beware. 

Don't drift into extravagant expenditure. Bet- 
ter live on oatmeal porridge and brown bread 
than spend more than you can afford or drift 
into debt. The pleasure of a day's outing or of 



Young Men, Don't Drift 65 

an evening's gaiety has a nasty after-taste when 
for weeks or months you have to avoid certain 
people because yon owe them money which you 
can not repay. A young man sometimes spends 
in a single evening money enough to fill his heart 
with anxiety for many a weary day and is per- 
haps tempted to take money which does not be- 
long to him in order to stay pressing demands 
and in hope of the opportunity of repayment, 
which never comes. Young man, take warning. 

Don 't drift into habits of gambling. There is 
plenty of it all around us, and a man feels rather 
lonely when he refuses to join in. Better feel 
lonely than join in. How much better to put 
the foot down and refuse the first invitation! 
You mean to refuse the second; but if you are 
going to refuse at all, it will be unspeakably 
easier to refuse at first than afterward. Betting 
is a bad thing and should be avoided. Love and 
home are sacrificed to the companions of the bet- 
ting-ring. Business is neglected because they 
live in the feverish hope of coming in for a wind- 
fall and of getting money without giving an 
equivalent of any sort. 

Don't drift into habits of drinking. Nothing 
is easier than to do this. No man means to be 
a drunkard when he starts drinking. Those who 
are now in the agony of delirium were once as 



66 -1 Nobl l 

pure and true as you are; bul they were carried 

down an almost insensible gradient. Beware of 

their fate and don't follow their earlier sfc 
lest you acquire a momentum you can not arrest 
and go down to hell. There is no better safe- 
guard to a young man in life than to beware of 
the first drink. 

They say that smoking leads to drinking. If 
so. it would be well to avoid the firs! cigaret. 
Is it wise to begin a habit for which you can not 
plead any good reason except that others do 
it, and which may lead you into drinking, bad 
companionship, and other detrimental thin 

Don't drift into habits of impurity. In all 
of us there are appetites and desires which are 
beautiful and innocent enough when kept in 
their right place; but they are very reluctant to 
be kept there, and are ever chafing to ascend the 
throne of the being and assume the mastership 
of the life. But who shall depict the horrors of 
the wreckage of all that is bright and beautiful 
and happy in the life of the miserable victim who 
has yielded to their first suggestion? Beware 
of the society of those who are familiar with the 
ways of darkness and impurity. Beware of spec- 
tacles and pictures, of amusements and books, 
that excite the lower passions. Never go to a 
place to which you could not take your mother or 



Young Men, Don't Drift 67 

sister. Never become familiar with a girl whom 
you could not introduce to the purest woman you 
know. Never treat a girl another way than you 
would like a man to treat your own sister. 

It is not necessary to yield to temptation. Ask 
Jesus to help you to be an overcomer. This he 
will gladly do. One earnest, believing cry for 
help will bring him near, and when he enters 
the soul, impurity can no more stand against his 
indwelling than straw before fire or darkness 
before day. I wish you a pure and noble life. 




Flirting 69 

CHAPTER XXII 
FLIRTING 

|LIRTING is making love as a pastime. 
It is a lack of earnestness or due re- 
spect and should not be indulged in by 
respectable girls and boys. Flirting is an out- 
rage upon the most holy and exalted feeling of 
the human soul and the most sacred and im- 
portant relation of life. The refined soul is al- 
ways disgusted with it. It is very demoralizing 
in its tendency and low and base in its character. 

There is much trifling courting among the 
young in some portions of the country, carried 
on sometimes when the young man means 
nothing but present pleasure and sometimes 
when the young woman has no other object in 
view. The results are often disastrous. Such 
courting is confined mostly to young men and 
women before they are of age. Some who are 
questionable characters flirt after they are older, 
I am sorry to say. There is no excuse for such 
actions, and these should be frowned upon by 
decent, respectable persons of any and all ages. 

Young man, let all your dealings with women 
be frank, honest, and noble. Treat every woman 



70 A Noble Life 

you meet as you would wish another man to 
treat your innocent. Confiding sister. Young 

lady, take warning. 



The Choice of Friends 71 

CHAPTEE XXIII 

THE CHOICE OF FRIENDS 

E VERY, very careful in choosing your 
friends and prefer friends who will 
benefit you to those who will not. Choose 
your company for profit just as you do your 
books. This is as much a matter of habit as any- 
thing else. 

We are known by the company we keep: for 
when unrestrained, we are prone to choose and 
associate with those whose manners and dispo- 
sitions are agreeable and congenial to ours; 
hence, when we find persons frequenting any 
company whatsoever, we are disposed to believe 
that such company is congenial to them, not 
only in regard to their intellectual capacities and 
accomplishments, but also in regard to their 
moral disposition and their particular manner in 
life. 

Good company improves not only our man- 
ners but also our minds. If our companions are 
pious, they will improve our morals; if they 
are polite, they will tend to improve our man- 
ners ; if learned, they will add to our knowledge 
and correct our errors. On the other hand, if 



J2 A Noble Life 

they arc immoral, ignorant, vulgar, their impress 
will most sorely be left upon us. it therefore 

becomes B matter of no trivial cone. Til to select 

and associate with proper company while avoid- 
ing that which is certainly prejudicial. We 

should seek the company of those who are known 
to possess superior merit and natural endow- 
ments; for then, by being assimilat ed in manners 

and disposition, we rise. Whereas by associating 

with those who are our inferiors in every respect, 

we become assimilated with them and thereby be- 
come degraded. 

Upon the whole, much care and judgment are 
necessary in selecting that company which will 

he profitable. Good company is that which is 
composed of intelligent and well-bred persons — 
persons whose language is chaste and good, whose 
sentiments are pure and edifying. We should 
value persons, not according to the wealth or 
position that has come to them by accident, but 
rather according to the respect in which they 
are held. The habit of associating with those 
who are highly esteemed will win you respect 
also. 




Beauty 73 

CHAPTER XXIV 

BEAUTY 

OD IS a lover of beauty. He fashioned 
the worlds in beauty when there was no 
eye to behold them but his own. The 
lorest, the cliff, the mountain, the tree — each is 
a statue of beauty. Every leaf, stem, vine, and 
flower is a form of beauty; every hill and dale 
and landscape is a picture of beauty. There are 
many other beautiful things I shall not attempt 
to mention here; enough has been said to prove 
that God is a lover of beauty. 

The highest style of beauty to be found in 
nature is the human form animated and lighted 
up by the intelligence within. In speaking of 
beauty one is apt to think of a comely form and 
a pretty face. But these soon fade away. I like 
to think of the beauty found in the child or adult 
which shines out of a noble life and a good char- 
acter. This is a lasting beauty ; it perisheth not. 
It forms the white robe of the saints. It wreathes 
the countenance of every doer of good. It adorns 
every honest face. It shines in the virtuous life. 
It molds the hands of charity. It sweetens the 
voice of sympathy. It sparkles on the brow of 



i l .1 NdbU hifi 

wisdom. It (lashes in the eye <>f love. It breathes 
in the spirit of piety. It is that which may gTOW 
by the hand of eiilture in vwvy human soul. It 

is the flower of the spirit. 

Thifi beauty IS placed within the reach of us 
all. We may all be beautiful though our forms 
may he uncomely and our features not the pret- 
tiest; OUT spirits may he beautiful and this in- 
ward beauty always shines through. A beauti- 
ful heart will (lash out in the eye. A lovely soul 
will glow in the face. A BWeel spirit will tune 
the voice and wreathe the countenance in charms. 
Oh, there is power in interior beauty ! It changes 
not with the features and fades not with the 
years. It can be relied upon. 

A pretty woman pleases the eye, but a ^ood 
woman does more — she pleases the heart. The 
one is a jewel, the other a treasure. It is beauty 
of soul and character that is most to be desired. 
It is possible for some to possess both. If you 
are blest with pretty form and feature, you can 
also possess the greater beauty — that of the 
godly, Spirit-filled, and perfect loveliness that a 
saint posses- 
Dear reader, if you wish to be beautiful, live 
a life free from sin, love God above everything, 
ever he found doing his blessed will, and you 
will be beautiful. 




Judging Others 75 

CHAPTER XXV 

JUDGING OTHERS 

|E SHOULD be very careful how we 
judge others. The great misfortune 
arising from a disposition to judge oth- 
ers and meddle with their affairs consists in its 
being void of genuine philanthropy. Men and 
women are apt to look at others through a smoked 
glass, that they may avoid the brightness of the 
good qualities and discover more clearly the bad. 
Such a disposition as this is a destroyer of repu- 
tation, the bane of peace in society, the murderer 
of innocence, a curse to a community, and a dis- 
grace to our species. 

Let each reader examine and see if this pro- 
pensity, so deep rooted in human nature, is exer- 
cising an influence over his or her mind. If so, 
banish it from your bosom, as you would a dead- 
ly viper. Let its enormity be held up to children 
by parents and teachers, that they may learn to 
dread, despise, and avoid it. Teach them charity, 
forbearance, forgiveness, and all the virtues that 
adorn our race. 

"Let us not therefore judge one another any 
more" (Rom. 14:13). 




Music 77 

CHAPTER XXVI 

MUSIC 

|H THE rapturous charm of music ! What 
power in its spirit-chords of subduing 
harmony to soften, melt, enchain ! Truly 
there is wonderful power in music. It calls the 
religious devotee to worship, the patriot to his 
country's altar, the philanthropist to his gener- 
ous work. It elevates, empowers, and strength- 
ens. Who does not know the softening power of 
music, especially the music of the human voice. 
The human voice is the most perfect musical 
instrument ever made, and well it might be, for 
it had the most skilful Maker. The voice should 
be cultivated to sing the tones of love to man 
and God, to sing the beautiful songs of Zion. At 
the altar of God it should pour forth melodious 
praise. How sweet it makes the worship of God 
to have the reverent emotions poured out in 
song! Children should be taught to sing; for 
what is sweeter than the songs of innocent child- 
hood, so refining, so refreshing, so suggestive of 
heaven ? 

Music sweetens the cup of bitterness, softens 
the hand of want, lightens the burden of life, 



7- .1 NobU TAfi 

makes the heart courageous and the soul cheer- 
fully devout. Into the soul of childhood and 
youth it pours a tide of redeeming influence. 
The "sweet singer of [srael n wedded his sineer- 
es1 prayers to melody and wafted them upward 
on the night air from his throbbing heart. In 
the soul that has been touched and made tender 
by pain, music finds a place where it may mur- 
mur its sweetest chords. 

.Music is healthful. There is no better cure 
for bad humors. We know of nothing more 
genial and heart-warming than to hear the whole 
family joining in a hymn or sonir. They will 
love each other and their home better for it. The 
hymn sung by a mother to her little boy may in 
after-days be a voice that will recall him from 
ruin. No family can afford to do without music. 
When rightly used, its effects, physical, intel- 
lectual, and moral, are good, very £ood. and only 
good. 

The Almighty hath made man to sing ><>n'_rs of 
praise to him throughout all eternity. Yes, there 
will be music in heaven. 



Anger 79 

CHAPTER XXVII 
ANGER 



T DOES no good to be angry. A man 
feels no better for it. It is really a tor- 
ment, and when the storm of passion 
has cleared away, it leaves a person to see that 
he has been very unwise and has made himself 
a fool in the eyes of others. 

Sinful anger, when it becomes strong, is called 
wrath ; when it makes outrages, it is fury ; when 
it becomes fixed, it is termed hatred; and when 
it intends to injure any one, it is called malice. 
All these wicked passions spring from anger. 
The continuance of anger and frequent fits of 
ill temper produce an evil habit in the soul, a 
propensity to be angry, which oftentimes ends in 
ire, bitterness, and morosity, when the mind 
becomes ulcerated, peevish, and querulous, and 
like a thin, weak plate of iron, receives impres- 
sions, and is wounded by the least occurrence. 

A fit of passion may give you cause to mourn 
all the days of your life. What crime has not 
been committed in the paroxysms of anger ? Has 
not the friend slain his friend ? the son murdered 
his parents? the creature blasphemed his Crea- 



80 A NobU Life 

tor? Who wishes for s neighbor or a partner 
in business a person given to anger 1 One feels 

as if one were living next door to a Hon; 
nest or a rabid animal. What is gained by angt 
Will a had temper draw customers, pay notes, 

or make creditors any hotter? 

Friendship, domestic happiness, self-respect, 
the esteem of others, and sometimes property are 
swept away by a whirlwind, perhaps a tornado, 
of anger. I have seen anger make wives un- 
happy, alienate husbands, spoil children, de- 
range all harmony, and disturb the quiet of a 
whole neighborhood. Anger, like too much wine, 
hides us from ourselves but exposes us to others. 

Some people seem to live in a perpetual storm. 
Our advice is to keep cool under all circum- 
stances. We should learn to command our feel- 
ings and to act prudently in all the ordinary 
concerns of life. This will better prepare us to 
meet sudden emergencies with calmness and for- 
titude. If we permit our feelings to be ruffled 
and disconcerted in small matters, they will be 
thrown into a whirlwind when big events over- 
take us. Our best antidote is salvation. 

"He that is slow to anger is better than the 
mighty: and lie that ruleth his spirit than he 
that taketh a city'' ( Prow 16:32). "He that 
is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of 



Anger 81 

wicked devices is hated" (Prov. 14:17). "A 
wrathful man stirreth up strife: but he that is 
slow to anger appeaseth strife" (Prov. 15:18). 
"A soft answer turneth away wrath: but griev- 
ous words stir up anger" (verse 1). 



Courtship 83 

CHAPTER XXVIII 

COURTSHIP 

HO COURTS honestly? Some, it is true, 
but few indeed. The youth of both 
sexes ought, however, to be perfectly 
honest in their intercourse with each other so as 
to exhibit always their true character and na- 
ture. Dishonesty is, perhaps, a greater barrier 
even than ignorance to a proper understanding 
of the real character of those with whom we con- 
template matrimonial alliance. Young men and 
women are not true to themselves. They put on 
false characters. They assume airs not their 
own. They shine in borrowed plumes. They 
practise every species of deception for the con- 
cealment of their real characters. They study 
to appear better than they are. They seek, by 
the adornment of dress and gems, by the bland- 
ishments of art and manners, by the allurements 
of smiles and honeyed words, by the fascination 
of pleasure and scenes of excitement, to add un- 
real, unpossessed charms to their persons and 
characters. They appear in each other's society 
to be the embodiment of goodness and sweetness, 
the personification of lofty principle and holy 



M A Noble Life 

love, when in fact they are full of human weak- 
nesses and frailties. 

The object of courtship is the choice of a com- 
panion. It is not to woo; it is not to charm or 
gratify or please simply for the present pleas- 
ure. It is simply and plainly for the selection of 
a life-companion; one who must bear, suffer. 
and enjoy life with US in all its frowns and 
smiles, joys and sorrows; one who can walk 
pleasantly, willingly, and confidingly by our side 
through all the intricate vicissitudes incident to 
mortal life. Now, how shall courtship be con- 
ducted so as to make marriage a certainty and 
not a lottery? This is the question. Now let us 
ask what is to be sought? You answer, A com- 
panion. What is a companion? A congenial 
spirit, a person whose age, opinions, tastes, hab- 
its, modes of thought, and feelings are similar 
to our own. It is one who would enjoy what we 
would enjoy, dislike what we would dislike, ap- 
prove w T hat we would approve, and condemn 
what w r e would condemn, not for the purpose of 
agreeing with us, but of his or her own free will ; 
one who is kindred in soul with us, is already 
united to us by the ties of spiritual harmony. To 
discover this union is the object of courtship. 

Courtship, then, is a voyage of discovery. If 
in all the things mentioned a couple honestly and 



Courtship 85 

inmostly agree, and find a deep and thrilling 
pleasure in their agreement, find their union of 
sentiment gives a charm to their social inter- 
course ; if now they feel that their hearts as well 
as their sentiments are bound in a holy unity, 
that for each other they would live and labor 
and make every personal sacrifice with gladness, 
and that without each other they know not how 
to live, it is their privilege, yes, their duty, to 
form a matrimonial alliance. And it will not be 
a lottery. They will be married in the full blaze 
of light and love, be united in a happy, virtuous, 
and useful union, to bless themselves and the 
world with a living type of heaven. 




A Gracious Invitation 87 



CHAPTER XXIX 

A GRACIOUS INVITATION 

JESUS said, "If any man will come after 
me, let him deny himself, and take up 
his cross daily, and follow me" (Luke 
9: 23). "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
thou shalt be saved, and thy house [our loved 
ones]" (Acts 16:31). "Say unto them, As I 
live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in 
the death of the wicked; but that the wicked 
turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye 
from your evil ways; for why will ye die, 
house of Israel?" (Ezek. 33:11). 

A more convenient season than today for com- 
ing to Christ will never dawn. ' ' Today if ye will 
hear his voice, harden not your hearts" (Heb. 
3:7, 8). "Whosoever shall call upon the name 
of the Lord shall be saved" (Eom. 10: 13). Jesus 
said, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a 
man be born again, he can not see the kingdom 
of God" (John 3 • 3-5). "To him that overcom- 
eth will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even 
as I also overcame, and am set down with my 
Father in his throne" (Rev. 3:21). "Come 
unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, 



88 A Noble Life 

and 1 will give you rest. Take my yoke upon 

you, and learn of me; for 1 am meek and Lowly 

in heart : and ye shall find real unto your souls. 

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is Light" 
(Matt. 11:28-30 . 

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist 

the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh 
to (Jod, and he will draw nigh to you. . . . 
Bumble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and 
he shall lift you up" (Jas. 4:7-K>,. V ()U can 
not free yourself from past sin. It must be done 
through Jesus Christ. "There is none other 
name under heaven given among men whereby 
we must be saved" (Acts 4: 12). Why not ac- 
cept the sure remedy, brother, sister? 

The Lord does not call sinners in droves. It 
is a personal matter. Now is the day of salva- 
tion. You have heard the call. What is the 
answer? There are two masters; which will 
you serve? Jesus or Satan? Satan offers money, 
fame, worldly pleasure, gratified appetites, etc. 
(1 Tim. 6:9). His promises are sugar-coated; 
for no one would follow if told he was to sink 
lower and lower in sin and shame. "The wages 
of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). The devil de- 
ceives his children, doesn't he? Have you ever 
noticed what a big" offer the devil made Jesus? 
Offered him control of all the world if he would 



A Gracious Invitation 89 

just worship him (Matt. 4:8, 9). You would 
have taken it quick and chanced it, wouldn't 
you? Notice Christ's answer, "Thou shalt wor- 
ship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou 
serve " (Matt. 4:10). 

You can have your choice, but must take one. 
Which offer for you? Jesus died for you. He 
loves you and offers you pardon and peace. He 
says, ' ' Come, tired one, and find rest. ' ' No man 
can pluck you out of the Father's hand (John 
10 : 29) . He will give you more than you can ask 
or think (Eph. 3 : 20) . Do you believe his word ? 
His word is infallible. If you make Jesus your 
choice, you will make no mistake, you will never 
regret it. 

"0 sinner, see he lingers still; 

Thy restless soul he waits to greet. 
Resist no more his holy will; 
Come bow at Jesus' feet. M 

He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice 
of thy cry (Isa. 30 : 19). "Come now and let us 
reason together, saith the Lord: though your 
sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow" 
(Isa. 1:18). 

Dear young people, are you afraid to step out 
on the Lord's side? Are you afraid you can't 
stand ? Do you think the devil stronger than the 



90 .1 NobU I 

God of heaven, the God who made the earth and 

all that is therein! Has he nol already con 

quered the world, the flesh, and the devill Did 

he not COme OUt victorious over sin. death, hell, 

and the grave! And he is set down at the right 
hand of God interceding for his children. Be 
gives his angels charge concerning you. "The 
angel of the Lord encampetfa around about them 

that fear him." He also promised not to let us 
he tempted more than we are aide to stand, hut 
with every temptation to make a way for our 
escape (1 Cor. 10: 13). Do you believe his word! 
Ee is able to save to the uttermost all who will 
come unto him. He is just as able to keep you 
saved; only trust him, this almighty, all-power- 
ful God, the God that made heaven and earth 
and all that is therein. Oh, what a mighty God 
we serve! You are needed in the vineyard of 
the Lord. Will you not take your place and help 
us? Do not delay. Come while you may. 



Life 91 



CHAPTER XXX 
LIFE 



E POINT to two ways in life, and if the 
young man and maiden whose feet are 
lingering in soft green meadows and 
flowery paths will consider these two ways sober- 
ly and earnestly before moving onward, and 
choose the one that truth and reason tell them 
leads to honor, success and happiness, they will 
wisely choose the " noble life." Every youth 
should form at the outset of his career the solemn 
purpose to make the most and the best of the 
powers God has given him and to turn to the best 
possible account every otitward advantage within 
his reach. Decide at once upon a noble purpose, 
then take it up bravely, bear it off joyfully, lay 
it down triumphantly. 

Life is grand. God made it glorious. How 
much life means words can not tell. Take life 
like a man. Take it just as it is — an earnest, 
vital, essential affair. Take it just as though 
you were personally born to the task of perform- 
ing a merry part in it, as though the world had 
waited for your coming. Take it as though it 
were a grand opportunity to do and achieve, to 



92 A Noble Life 

carry Forward greal and good schemes, to help 
ami cheer the Buffering, weary, the broken- 
hearted. 

We counsel the young man or woman, as the 

case may be, never to despair. If he can make 
nothing by any work that presents itself now, 
he can at least make himself; never be east down 
by misfortunes. If a spider breaks his web, 
over and over he will mend it again. Do not fall 
behind the very insect on your walls. If the 
sun is going down, look up to the stars; if earth 
is dark, keep your eyes on heaven. With the 
presence and promise of God we can bear up 
under anything and should press on and never 
falter or fear. Do not rely upon others, but let 
there be in your own bosom a calm, deep, decided, 
and all-pervading principle. Look to God to aid 
you in the task before you and firmly plant your 
foot on the right. Let others live as they please 
— tainted by low tastes, debasing passions, a 
moral putrefaction. Be you the salt of the earth ; 
incorrupt in your deeds, in your inmost thoughts 
and feelings ; your manners blameless ; your 
views of duty not narrow, false, and destructive, 
but a savor of life to all around you. Let your 
speech be always with ^race, seasoned with the 
salt of truth, honor, manliness, and benevolence. 
Now, dear reader, a word in conclusion. Have 



Life 93 

you ever thought of the influence of a life ? You 
know that God has made you, fashioned all your 
members, and breathed into you the breath of 
life. Stop and think for what purpose he has 
done so. Surely he did not intend to form you 
and place you in this world for no higher end 
than that you might live to yourself, seeking 
only your own gratification. No you can not 
think so. He formed you for his glory, placed 
you here, and gave you a work to do for him. 
Here you must exercise the influence of a life. 
There are only two sides — God's and Satan's. 
Tour life must exercise an influence on some 
around you, either for good or evil. It must do 
so even if that influence be unconscious. Oh, 
rest not till you can say from your heart that 
you belong to God and that your desire is that 
God's great gift to you of life may be used for 
his glory, that the love of Jesus in your own 
heart may constrain you to seek to lead others 
to him also, and that the Holy Spirit may bless 
to those around you the influence of your life. 
All may not know how much God has used them 
for his glory. But be assured that no Christian 
life is spent in vain. And what we know not 
now Christ has told us we shall know hereafter. 
Our duty is to reflect our Savior's light, leaving 



94 A NobU TAfi 

in his handfl the effect that 1 i Lfht shall produce 
on others. 
The writer of this hook is hoping thai some of 

its young readers will pause and think how sol- 
emn a thing it is to live, is hoping to lead them 
to consider that the greal gift of life has been 

given to them by <Jod, not to be frittered away 
in the vain follies of the world, but to he spent 
in the service of their blessed Savior, whose yoke 
they will find to be easy and whose burden is 
light. This is the earnest prayer of the writer 
to Him whose blessing alone maketh the words 
of man of any avail. 
One has well said : 

Thou must be true to thyself 

If thou the truth wouldst teach; 

Thy soul must overflow if thou 
Another's soul would reach; 

It needs the overflow of heart 
To give the lips full speech. 

Think truly, and thy thoughts 
Shall the world's famine feed; 

Speak truly and each word of thine 
Shall be a truthful seed; 

Live truly, and thy life shall be 
A great and noble creed. 



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